Scotch College

Clubs combine for a memorable Heritage Walk

Bright sun and a brilliant blue sky greeted more than fifty Old Scotch Bushwalking Club and Wine and Food Society members, as they gathered outside Scotch on 21 October for the annual combined clubs 'winery walk'.

Normally the walk would include visits to a winery and involve a strenuous stroll to build up a thirst for wine tasting and an appetite for a gourmet lunch. But in honour of Scotch's 150th celebrations, this year's event instead included a tram ride, a heritage walk, a ferry trip, a special lunch in Williamstown, and a train trip back to Scotch.

The party set off uphill to Riversdale Road, where we surprised sleepy Sunday morning commuters by boarding a 75 tram en masse and heading for the city.

We alighted at Lansdowne Street, and set off on a pilgrimage that covered the early Scotch sites in East Melbourne and the city.

Our trek took us next to Southbank, where we boarded the Williamstown ferry for an hour's smooth ride on a sparkling Yarra River to Gem Pier, and a short walk to our lunch stop. We were most pleasantly wined and dined at the Royal Victorian Motor Yacht Club, where the view from the club terrace over Hobsons Bay was definitely worth experiencing.

After a satisfying lunch and few boutique wines, we departed for a short walk along Williamstown streets teeming with tourist traffic and lined with interesting colonial-era buildings.

We began the final leg of our odyssey at Williamstown Gardens railway station, for the trip via Spencer Street to Kooyong station, and then back up the hill to Scotch.

It was a great day, and an excellent way for members of both clubs to honour Scotch's sesquicentenary.

John Turner